Final Project Blog and Sustainable Events Participation

I have thoroughly enjoyed tackling my personal food project this semester!  I’ve learned so much about the elements that go into cooking and eating sustainable, locally-grown, and organic foods, as well as tried my hand at cooking six of my own dishes.  I’ve discovered that I’m actually a better cook than I give myself credit for, if I just put a little more time and effort into it.  And I’ve learned that it is absolutely worth it to do so, both for my own health and the health of the environment.  Some specific goals that I had when I started this project were to identify the local grocery options involving local/organic/sustainable foods, learning more about food growing and cultivating processes, and researching other facts and ways that I can support local food in Bloomington.  I feel that I achieved these goals well, and laid a solid foundation of knowledge that will serve me well in making food choices in the future.  Here is a sampling of some of the things I learned from my various research efforts:

·         Average miles that non-local food travels to get to your table (over 1,500- the equivalent of 10 trips across Indiana!)

·         How the environment is affected from buying food locally versus non-locally (increased carbon emissions from foods that travel longer distances, increased use of harmful packaging from chain stores, contribute to local biodiversity when purchasing food from local farmers)

·         How the environment is affected through my meat and vegetable choices (greater carbon impact of beef versus chicken, much lower carbon impacts of vegetables, etc.)

·         How the local economy benefits from my food purchases (helping my community by keeping my money local, supporting local jobs, contributing to lasting and sustainable family farms, etc.)

·         Importance of my food choices to the community in general (strengthening of community values, meeting local farmers at farmer’s market, strengthening food security by supporting local farms)

Additionally, I was able to purchase quite a few of my ingredients from the Bloomington farmer’s market to make my recipes.  These were my first trips to the market, and there will be many more to follow after seeing what a unique and wonderful experience it had to offer!  Through cooking my individual recipes (most of which were taken from a sustainable cookbook lent to me from a classmate), I learned a lot more about what types of spices go well together, different methods of cooking meat and vegetables, and just some very basic cooking knowledge that I lacked.  For example:

·         I learned what constitutes a single garlic ‘clove’ versus a ‘bunch’ of garlic cloves… to the extreme detriment of my pasta sauce recipe!!!

·         I learned that I HATE to peel garlic cloves, but LOVE the way they smell J

·         I found that I really enjoy grating things!

·         I learned what lemon and orange zests are, as well as what type of spice ‘mace’ is (one of the ingredients for the sweet zucchini biscuits, which I originally was horrified to see… I’m not gonna put MACE in my biscuits!)

·         You should always allow plenty of time for potatoes to boil… when you think they’re done, give ‘em another couple minutes…!

·         Timing is everything when working with several different mixtures of ingredients… having one thing cooked and ready to stir into something else isn’t gonna do much when the something else is still boiling

As I said, I am very glad I took on this project, because there were some really basic things I needed to teach myself about cooking J.  It’s like 7^th grade home ec. never happened… but you gotta start somewhere, and this project was just what I needed to get going!  I am excited to say that I plan to continue my cooking project, hopefully completing one new dish per week, as well as planning out several home-cooked meals a week instead of eating as much take out.  To this end, I was delighted to find a “Simply in Season: Recipes that Celebrate Fresh, Local Foods in the Spirit of More-with-Less” cookbook at the Fair Trade sale that I went to at the Frangipani room a couple of weeks ago. 

This is what I will be using to cook from and try out even more new recipes… my goal is to be a cooking guru (haha), or at least a much more skilled cook by the summer, so that I can eat more healthfully and spend less money on food!  So, speaking of the Fair Trade sale, here are the three outside sustainable events that I attended through the semester:

·         The Bloomington Farmer’s Market.  I visited several times during the early fall to get ingredients for my recipes and sample local foods available there.  I even found an information booth one Saturday for SIREN’s solar house tour, which provided some incredibly helpful information for my group project, as well.  Can’t say enough positive things about the farmer’s market, I will be going all the time next year, and maybe even stop by the winter farmer’s market as well!

·         A SIREN presentation at the Monroe County Public Library.  This was in the last month or so of the semester, when my group and I were working on assimilating more detailed information for our presentation and thought this talk would be beneficial for us.  It definitely was… I got a much more in-depth understanding of what the process is for solar panel roof installation, what the paybacks are, and what initiatives they suggested (the 50-50 plan was mentioned here, which we included in our presentation).

·         The Fair Trade sale at the Frangipani room in the Union.  This was such a great sale, having goods made from many developing countries, whose sales will go back to supporting these craftsmen and women with their businesses to help them make a living and support their families.  They had all kinds of things, ranging from amazing jewelry and bags, to holiday ornaments, knickknacks, and cookbooks… where I found my new cookbook!

This class has been a thoroughly enjoyable one, where I felt challenged to think more deeply about the sustainable issues affecting our world.  Being able to put these ideas into practice as well, through my group and individual projects, provided invaluable lessons that can only be learned by doing: trying new things, using new ideas, and evaluating the results.  Thanks so much for a great class!

Personal Project Update

The last two recipes I made for my food project were a dill-lemon chicken, and the sweet zucchini biscuits that I brought to class.  Here are the ingredients and cooking instructions for both:

Dill-lemon chicken:

·         1 cup fat-free sour cream

·         1 tbsp fresh, minced dill

·         1 tsp lemon-pepper seasoning

·         1 tsp lemon zest

·         4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves

Combine sour cream, dill, lemon-pepper, and lemon zest.  Spoon one-quarter of mixture into slow cooker.  Arrange chicken breasts on top in single layer.  Pour remaining sauce over chicken and spread evenly.  Cover and cook on low for 3-4 hours.

 Sweet zucchini biscuits:

·         ½ cup margarine or butter, softened

·         1 cup packed light brown sugar

·         2 eggs

·         1 tbsp orange or lemon juice

·         2 ½ cups all-purpose flour

·         2 tsp baking powder

·         ½ tsp ground cinnamon

·         ½ tsp ground mace

·         ¼ tsp salt

·         1 ½ cups shredded, drained zucchini

·         ½ cup chopped pecans

·         1 tbsp grated orange zest (orange part of rind only)

·         Powdered sugar

Heat oven to 350 degrees; grease 2 baking sheets.  Beat margarine until fluffy.  Beat in sugar, eggs, and orange or lemon juice.  Combine flour, baking powder, spices and salt; stir into egg mixture.  Stir in zucchini, pecans, and orange zest.  Drop by teaspoonfuls onto cookie sheets.  Bake about 10 minutes.  Cool on racks.  Sprinkle with powdered sugar before serving.  Makes 5 dozen biscuits.

The dill-lemon chicken was a recipe I’ve been wanting to make for a long time, both to see how it tastes and to utilize the crockpot I got for Christmas last year!  It turned out pretty good, maybe a tad bit less flavorful than I expected, but dill is a rather mild spice.  I took the chicken and put it over a bed of brown rice, with extra sauce spooned over it, and a salad.  It was pretty good overall, and nice to save for leftovers, too! 

Dill-lemon chicken ingredients

Mixin' the sauce

Cookin in the crockpot!

Pretty good meal!

I wasn’t able to document my zucchini biscuits with photos, because my camera charge had run out… but at least I was able to bring them in to share!  I’m glad everyone seemed to like them.  I personally thought they were a bit too soft, but they were tasty overall.  It was very fun mixing the dough for them, and I also bought a really nice grater to shred the zucchini with, so I am slowly but surely adding to my culinary utensil collection, as well!  If any of you are interested in trying this recipe out, I recommend it- they were fun to make and good to eat!

One last bit of research I’ve done in regard to my project is to investigate the specifics of free-range, pasture-raised chickens.  I have considered a vegetarian diet in the past, but have come to the overall conclusion that I would miss eating chicken too much.  I do also enjoy hamburgers… BUT, through this project, I’ve realized that there are multiple ways to still enjoy my carnivorous habits, while reducing the impact that my food choices make on the environment.  I am going to try to drastically cut my meat consumption down, leaning towards a vegetarian diet whenever possible; but, when I am craving meat, choosing chicken more often than beef (which I do anyway, most of the time).  To this end, I wanted to ensure that I informed myself as much as possible about the type of chicken I should be purchasing, what my money is buying and supporting, etc.  I found this article online, (it provides the full, download-able version near the bottom) which goes into detail about the myriad of benefits of raising poultry on pasture, as well as providing tips to livestock farmers that include best raising methods, breeds of chicken that thrive  on pasture-raised methods, types of food and housing that are best for your poultry, different processing methods, etc.  Some of the most interesting facts I gleaned from this article:

·         50% of the sale price of each chicken goes back to the farmer and his/her family; chickens sell at $1.75 per pound (average weight of 3.5 pounds), and turkeys sell for $3 per pound (average weight of 18 pounds dressed); whereas, for conventional growers under contract, they only receive about 22 CENTS per pound for a 3.5 pound bird!

·         Housing costs for local, pasture-raised chickens are typically much lower than for

                   conventional growers

·         Chickens raised on pasture make it easier to graze other livestock there, because chickens deposit nutrients through their waste, and work it into the soil; this makes vegetable production easier as well, because you don’t have to use chemical fertilizers; this method leads to a more diversified operation that earns money from several markets, contributing to a stronger farm and environment

·         “Vertically integrated” corporations control almost every aspect of chicken production, and have monopolized almost 100% of this multi-billion dollar market

·         Efficiency in poultry production has sacrificed both the autonomy and independence of farmers, the welfare of flocks, and the taste and quality of meat and eggs

Such a breadth of information in just one article!  A very important read for those who are interested in streamlining their diets and knowing more about where, exactly, their food comes from and how it’s processed.  Buying and supporting local food and farmers is just a good practice, for everyone involved.  BOOOO to corporate producers!!!

Personal Project Update

In honor of the Thanksgiving holiday, I decided to do some research on the carbon footprint of meat versus vegetables, which I got from the Meat Eater’s Guide to Climate Change and Health website.  It is a very fascinating and informative website, so I urge you to look into it in more depth… here is the link.  Also, in honor of the gluttony of Thanksgiving, I decided to make two dishes; one that I made to take to my family’s Thanksgiving dinner, and one that I made on my own.  I’ll detail the recipes for the two dishes later, but first, some info on the Meat Eater’s Guide.

For those of us that aren’t familiar (although I’m fairly confident that most of us in this class are), the Meat Eater’s Guide website gives information about the cradle-to-grave lifespan of our foods, and the carbon footprint that they leave based on GHG (greenhouse gas) emissions from both before and after they leave the farm.  It also talks about the footprint that is caused from food that is produced but never eaten; the health effects of a diet heavy in red meat; ways in which individuals can decrease their carbon footprints; the various antibiotics, hormones, and toxins associated with meat produced from confined livestock operations; and the numerous benefits of eating only grass-fed, pasture-raised, and organic meat and vegetables.  Here are some of the big points to take away from this guide:

·         Lamb, beef, and cheese produce the highest amounts of GHG’s, because they come from ruminant animals that produce methane through their digestive processes (from being fed crap diets containing fishmeal, corn, soybean, and other grains that livestock shouldn’t eat).

·         Most GHG emissions occur during the production process of various meats and vegetables.

·         Most plant protein emission is generated after the crops leave the farm.

·         Wasted food is a MAJOR source of GHG’s; you should buy only what you know you can eat, and reduce the amount of food that is wasted.

·         Waste disposal and transportation emissions account for a larger percentage of GHG’s from plant food than from meat.

·         Taking the “meatless Monday” pledge, while having no significant impact on GHG emissions, can dramatically improve personal health and habits.

·         If everyone in the U.S. went vegetarian, there would only be a moderate effect on overall carbon emissions; this is due to the fact that the U.S. has much larger, industrial contributors to carbon pollution (factories).

·         Antibiotics, hormones, and other toxins in an animal’s system can impact the humans who eat them; hormones have been linked to greater risks of cancer, and also cause higher rates of infection in the animals they are fed to.

·         If everyone in the U.S. ate no meat or cheese just one day a week, it would be the equivalent of not driving 91 billion miles; or like taking 7.6 million cars off the road.

·         “Eating less, greener, and healthier meat is good for your health and the planet”.  http://www.ewg.org/meateatersguide/a-meat-eaters-guide-to-climate-change-health-what-you-eat-matters/

Also, I think Bill has shown us this graphic in class before, but I just really like how it illustrates the impact that choosing different food has on your overall carbon footprint:

This guide has definitely made me re-think America’s obsession with meat-related holidays… imagine if we all WERE actually vegetarians, and our main course was tofurkey instead of turkey on Thanksgiving… a vegetable casserole instead of ham at Christmas… how much of an impact would that have on carbon emissions for just those two times of the year?

Food for thought, definitely!  Speaking of food… the two recipes I made this week were quite different from what I normally would eat, which is why I decided to try them out.  The first one was a potato crust quiche, which is the one I made for Thanksgiving.  The recipe calls for:

·         3 medium potatoes

·         1/3 cup butter, softened

·         2 cups mixed, chopped, cooked vegetables

·         ½ cup shredded cheddar cheese

·         2 eggs

·         1 can (5.3 oz) evaporated milk

·         1/4 tsp salt

·         1/8 tsp pepper

·         1 cup bread cubes or crumbs

You basically boil the potatoes until tender, then mash them together with the softened butter to form the “crust” part of the quiche, as pictured: 

Then, you layer the rest of your cooked veggies and the cheese on top of the potatoes, mix the eggs, milk, salt, and pepper together and pour over the top, add the bread crumbs, and cook for 40-45 minutes in the oven.  My quiche was a bit over-filled with vegetables, so some of the egg/milk mixture spilled on the counter and I wasn’t sure how it would turn out… but it turned out very nicely!  It was pretty tasty, too… just needed a little extra salt at the table, but I left Thanksgiving dinner with an empty casserole dish, so I was proud J.

The next recipe was pretty simple.  I decided I wanted to make my own pasta sauce, and this recipe was for a white sauce (I normally prefer a red, tomato sauce when cooking on my own), so I thought this was worth a try.  So, to make this garlic parsley pesto sauce, you need:

·         1 cup low-fat cottage cheese

·         5 tbsp grated parmesan cheese

·         ½ cup boiling water

·         ½ cup fresh parsley

·         ½ cup fresh basil

·         2 large garlic cloves

·         Salt and pepper to taste

·      3 cups tender cooked pasta

Really simple, you just throw all the ingredients in a blender, then mix it with your pasta.  I was really excited to try this one, and it looked and smelled good…

...but it actually turned out to be a huge FAIL.  I don’t know if I overdosed on the parsley, garlic, basil, or what, but MAN did it have a bite to it!  So much so, that I couldn’t eat it L.  It was just waaaay too… spicy or something.  I dunno.  But I’m glad I tried it!  Making your own pasta sauce is a nice, healthier way to add your favorite tastes to your dinner, and I will definitely be trying it again!

Personal Project Update

One of the goals of my food project was to research the locally-supported, organic, and sustainable foods that the three main grocery store chains in Bloomington supported: Marsh, Kroger, and Bloomingfoods.  I have found out some interesting things!  Starting with Marsh… I was a bit surprised that a grocery chain that originated in Indiana would not have more information regarding the local farms and food products they support (or, if they do, it is not easily accessible).  I will keep looking, but thus far, all I’ve been able to find out regarding support of local farms/sustainable foods, etc., was one webpage that contains a list of “local” farmers throughout Indiana and Ohio, from which Marsh purchases some of its seasonal produce.  Of the farms listed, only one was located in Bloomington. 

Kroger, on the other hand, had a wealth of information regarding its support of local/organic food and products, as well as its support of sustainable food and practices.  I was pleased to find that they source sustainable seafood, and have a sustainable seafood policy link on their website, as well as a sustainability report for the year.  Looking further into both of these, here are some of the major points that I found:

• They are working with the World Wildlife Fund to ensure that their top 20 caught species are sourced from areas that are certified by the Marine Stewardship Council, or are part of the WWF improvement project.  Right now, they are at 56% of their top 20 species sourced from sustainable practices; their goal is to reach 75% by 2015. 
• They have stopped the sourcing of sharks, tuna, skates, rays, and a few other species
• They have instituted an educational campaign for their customers, utilizing countertop stanchions and brochures, as well as providing their sustainability report online, to spread the word about the importance of sustainable practices.
• They offer fair trade products (the selection of which has more than doubled in the past few years), Private Selection and Nature’s Market organic brands, and BPA-free products.
• They require their suppliers to meet the Food Marketing Institute’s animal welfare standards; along this line, more than 10% of their egg sales in 2010 were from cage-free chickens.
• They buy local from 20 dairies across the U.S. to supply their stores; they also have a number of certified organic processing facilities.
• Although their food delivery trucks travel quite a bit (295 million miles in 2010!), they are taking steps to reduce their environmental impact.  They have improved their transportation efficiency (measured by cases shipped per gallons of gas used) by 15.5% from their baseline in 2008; they hope to reach 40% by 2014.  
• They have increased their cube efficiency (number of boxes they can fit into their trucks), increase their miles per gallon, and reduced the number of empty miles they travel (trucks driving without products).

I would never have given Kroger credit for so many environmentally and sustainably conscious practices!  Although they still have a lot to work on, I was excited to see how much initiative they’ve taken in ensuring that their producing and shipping methods make less of an impact on the environment and resources.  

That leaves Bloomingfoods, which, as we all know, is the WORST place to go when looking to support local farmers, seeking foods produced with sustainable practices, and eating organically-grown produce.  All facetiousness aside, it was interesting to learn more about their products, as well as all of the different local programs they support in the community.  They have numerous articles and information about their food, activities in the community, ways for you to adopt more sustainable practices in your own life, and many other topics of interest.  Some of the info I gleaned from their website:

• They promote “Share the Harvest” in cooperation with Mother Hubbard’s Cupboard, and support numerous local farms and nonprofits, including the Local Grower’s Guild.
• They host panel discussions on a variety of topics, including local foods
• Their meat products are hormone and antibiotic free. 
• 30% of their produce is produced locally, and each section of their grocery offers multiple options for organic and fair trade foods/products.

Along these lines, here is a description of the criteria for organic foods and products:

Organic standards prohibit:

Synthetic pesticides, herbicides or fungicides

Antibiotics or added growth hormones

Bio-solids (sewage sludge) and synthetic fertilizers

Genetically modified organisms (GMOs), seeds or ingredients

Animal by-products in animal feed

Organic practices require:

Inspections of all farm fields, processing facilities and production and sales records by agents accredited as USDA Certifiers

Periodic testing of soil and water used in production

Continual monitoring, maintenance and improvement of soil health

Crop rotation, mulching and other practices to prevent soil erosion and enhance soil health

Specific composting methods for both animal and plant waste

Outdoor access for livestock

Pasture for all ruminants

100 percent certified organic feed for organic animals

(bloomingfoods.coop)

Some of these facts I knew, others I did not; having it available on their website was very helpful for me, and is an example of just one of the ways that Bloomingfoods serves its community by providing important information and tools that people can use to make more educated, responsible choices in their lives.  Researching all of this has really opened my eyes to many of the issues surrounding sustainable food, as well as all of the benefits one can receive from changing their diet to incorporate these foods in their lives.  More information to follow, but this was a great base of knowledge to find!

Fishery Management Strategies

Our Roseland reading on community economic development this week really struck a chord with me, especially one of the last lines of the chapter:  “In a commodity-intensive economy, people are compelled to seek full-time employment and an increasing income, but some people are making a shift.  By re-evaluating their needs and wants and realizing that their true demands are for comfort, security, health, and happiness, some people are finding alternative ways to satisfy these demands” (Roseland, pg. 183).  Not to be overly simplistic or maudlin, but for me, this little paragraph is really what life boils down to: the desire and the need, as human beings, to feel secure, happy, and healthy in their lives.  Everything else is just window dressing, as they say. 

Onto my blog topic… as I was reading, I was very impressed with the number of different ways people have found to utilize resources, time, and money to secure better, stable, and sustainable communities.  More specifically, the section on community forestry, fisheries and agriculture exemplifies the impact that a group of committed individuals can have on the direct operation of their economies, environments, and resources.  The short blurb about fishing quotas is something that I have had occasion to research for another class, and also read a book about over the summer.  Not sure if anybody’s read this one: 

It’s a great mix of fishery science, management, and local anecdotes (having to do specifically with Maine lobsters, but the same concepts apply).  The importance of establishing fishing quotas for local fisherman is just one of the themes explored in the book, as the over-fishing of lobsters and other fish can rapidly reduce population, and lead to extinction of species, as well as economic crisis.  Not to mention other problems related to bad fishing practices, like lots of by-catch (other fish and sea animals that die when they get caught in fishing nets),  pollution and dumping from fishing gear and boats, economic waste, and population dynamics shifts in different species of fish. 

More pertinent to this week’s discussion, however, are the different strategies that can be used to ensure proper fishing rights and cooperative fishing initiatives amongst stakeholders in areas that rely heavily on the ocean’s resources.  Roseland mentions the need to “establish community quotas whereby fishing rights are allocated to communities, and distributed in turn to local fishers” (pg. 180).  Related to this, I came across another article that focuses more specifically on management strategies that can be implemented to protect against overharvesting and control the amounts of fish caught in different markets (termed incentive blocking and incentive adjusting measures, respectively).  Some of the strategies mentioned are limited entry and buyback programs, gear and vessel restrictions, total allowable catches, vessel catch limits, and individual effort quotas.  The article goes into detail about each of these, for those who are interested. 

The end goal of programs that initiate these types of strategies is to change the current management systems in place in fisheries from those of economically and environmentally wasteful practices, to those of self-sustaining fish populations and cooperative fishing programs.  Just as in forestry policies, agricultural cooperatives, and countless other efforts and examples of communities working together towards more sustainable natural systems that provide for their needs, the fishing industry illustrates the absolute necessity of having a management system in place to ensure that resources are being allocated appropriately. 

Celebration, FL: Creepytown, USA

So this week’s Roseland reading talked about new urbanism as one component of land use and urban form.  New urbanism is a great concept, based on the idea of re-organizing urban areas to make them more inclusive, complete, and neighborly for residents.  Along with the many examples they give of new urban designs in the textbook, they mention some failed attempts at the concept that have drawn public criticism.  One example they give is that of the unincorporated town of Celebration, in Kissimmee, FL.  Some pics:









I immediately knew that I had to delve a bit deeper into this town for my blog this week, as Celebration has always held a creepy sort of fascination for me.  I have visited the town several times during family trips to Disney World, and have heard stories about the rigidity of their homeowner rules, town appearance, and general way of living.  Here is more information on the town, for those who are interested.  The town was originally conceptualized as an extenuation of Walt Disney’s idea of the Experimental Prototype Communities of Tomorrow (EPCOT).  I didn’t realize that it was also attempting to fall into the “new urban” category, as well.  As the book points out, a main reason why it fails to qualify as a new urban town is that it doesn’t incorporate one of the major functions that a new urban town is designed to address: transportation.  The town is connected directly to the Disney parks and resorts by World Drive, but residents would still need to drive about ten minutes to get there.  It also does not connect in any sustainable way to the outlying roads and highways of Kissimmee.  The town is a relatively exclusive, separate entity from the rest of the city, which violates the concept of community planning and urban organization that new urbanism strives to achieve.  Compared to this example of San Jose's future city development plans, taken from the Smart Growth America website, Celebration is fairly wide of the mark.  Although it is easy for the residents to move throughout the town itself on foot, bike, etc., it is necessary for them to drive virtually any time they want to venture out for work and other activities.  The town has been recognized by some in the community to be designed to meet some of the new urban specifications by incorporating different housing types throughout the town, and staying open to people with varying levels of income, but it is still not known for maintaining a consistent base of affordable housing that would contribute to the ‘lasting’ community feel.  Upon first opening, it was named the “new community of the year” in 2001 by the Urban Land Institute; however, the overall effect of the town has more to do with Disney’s visualization to make history with the continuation of the Disney brand, and less to do with a conscientious effort to establish an urban town within the larger city that facilitates effective land use, social capital, and transportation diversity.  Not to mention, it’s just creepy!  As visually appealing as I have found the town when I’ve visited, it’s equally eerie; the Stepford Wives analogy is great in relaying its perfect creepiness.  You walk down the main street (which is called Market Street instead of Main Street, because apparently there’s already a Main Street in Kissimmee, and there can’t be duplicate street names in the same city…), and you’re almost bowled over by the quaint, Disney-esqueness of it all.  It’s almost identical to walking down Main Street at the Magic Kingdom.  While that is desirable and expected when you’re visiting a theme park, its translation to an actual town is a bit disconcerting.  Also, I learned from the Wikipedia link that throughout autumn and during holiday events, the lampposts along Market Street are rigged to spurt leaf-shaped confetti and synthetic snow to emulate the seasons.  Whaaaaaaat?  That is just damn creepy!!!  So, now you all know my feelings on the town… and yet, during all my shuddering and gawking as I’ve walked through the town, I still have a *slight* desire to live there someday.  It’s just so perfect, and quaint… I would be a perfect candidate for brainwashing, I think.  Regardless of what you think of the town, it stands as an example of what can be achieved by visionaries in the architectural, business, and development fields… but in terms of qualifying for the new urbanism stamp, it has some re-developing to do.

Personal Project Update

So, for my second dish, I took another recipe out of the ‘Zucchini to Asparagus’ book, which was really more of just a side.  It was for herb-roasted red potatoes, which (being an Irish girl), really appealed to me.  I just love potatoes, period!  Another very easy recipe to make, and it turned out to be absolutely delicious:

·         1lb. red potatoes, cut in ½ inch pieces

                  ·         1-4 cloves garlic, chopped
                  ·         3-4 tbsp. of your fave fresh herb; parsley for me)
                  ·         3-4 tbsp. olive oil, salt and pepper to taste

Once everything is chopped and prepared, you simply coat the potatoes with the other ingredients, spread them out on a shallow baking dish, and roast for about 45 minutes.  They were ever so yummy and crispy!  But, I didn’t just eat roasted potatoes for dinner (although I would’ve been perfectly content to)…  I added an organic chicken breast, some salad, and bread to complete my dinner.  Here are some pics of the process: 

The ingredients for the potatoes came from the farmer's market

Fresh from the oven!

The chicken was purchased at Kroger

The complete meal- so good!

In terms of project critique, I still need to delve into some deeper research on Kroger and Marsh’s local and sustainable food policies (if any), as well as Bloomingfood’s.  Thus far, I have been to the farmer’s market a couple of times, and have completed two recipes from the ‘Zucchini to Asparagus’ cookbook.  My goal at the beginning of this project was to learn to make between five to ten recipes, as well as learn the basics of buying local/organic/sustainable foods.  At this point in the semester, I feel I still have a ways to go in terms of completing the tasks I have set to my satisfaction.  This next week, I plan to devote my time to simply conducting some deeper research into my topic, and blog about what I’ve found at the end.  Then, for each of the remaining weeks of the semester, I plan to try to cook one new recipe each week, as well as blog about additional information I’ve found to supplement my research.  I think that this should put me on track to complete about seven recipes total, and develop a good base of knowledge about the local food market in Bloomington.